China says it tracked and drove away two Philippine vessels that it accused of entering waters near the disputed Scarborough Shoal, in the latest confrontation between the two countries in the South China Sea.
The Chinese Coast Guard said on Thursday that the Philippine ships had intruded into waters around the atoll despite repeated warnings. It said coast guard personnel had taken "necessary measures", including tracking, monitoring and interception, to force the vessels to leave.
The agency described its actions as "standard, professional and lawful" and reiterated China's claim to sovereignty over Scarborough Shoal, which Beijing refers to as Huangyan Dao.
"We urge the Philippines to immediately cease its infringing and provocative actions," the statement said.
The Philippine Coast Guard and the Philippine Embassy in Beijing did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Scarborough Shoal is a rich fishing ground about 220km (137 miles) west of the Philippine island of Luzon. It is claimed by both China and the Philippines, with Beijing maintaining effective control of the area since 2012.
The latest incident comes just days after another confrontation between Chinese and Philippine vessels at the Second Thomas Shoal, another disputed reef in the South China Sea.
Both governments lodged diplomatic protests following that encounter. The dispute also featured prominently at a meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gathering on Wednesday.
Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Maria Theresa Lazaro said in a post on X that she reiterated a protest over what she called "unacceptable actions against Filipino personnel" after meeting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
China's Foreign Ministry quoted Wang as lodging a protest over "the Philippine personnel's egregious act of ramming Chinese law-enforcement vessels".
According to China's Foreign Ministry, Wang warned Manila that it would face "bitter consequences of its own making" if it continued what Beijing described as provocative actions in the South China Sea with the backing of outside powers.
The South China Sea remains one of the world's most disputed waterways, with China, the Philippines and several other countries asserting overlapping territorial claims.
Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight killed at least two people and injured 15 others, including two children, Ukrainian authorities said.&nbs...
Saudi Aramco has ordered staff to evacuate its headquarters amid escalating Houthi attacks on the kingdom. Two people were killed in an attack on D...
Nigeria's first Ebola case in more than a decade may be linked to travel in Uganda, Swiss authorities said on Thursday, although the source of ...
Russia is willing in principle to resume peace talks with Ukraine and the United States in November, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said after President Vladimir Putin met U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg.
Saudi Aramco has ordered staff to evacuate its headquarters amid escalating Houthi attacks on the kingdom. Two people were killed in an attack on Dammam airport, while Iran's IRGC Navy claimed strikes on seven vessels and warned the U.S. of a wider response.
Yemen's Houthis have denied targeting the holy city of Medina on Wednesday adding that they have not conducted any military operations towards Saudi Arabia either, denying earlier comments from the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.
Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight killed at least two people and injured 15 others, including two children, Ukrainian authorities said. Meanwhile, Russia said it had intercepted the vast majority of 630 Ukrainian drones launched towards Moscow.
Georgia’s Constitutional Court in Batumi will on Wednesday hear a lawsuit seeking to ban five Georgian opposition parties, four of which collectively gained 784,820 votes (37.79 per cent) in the country’s last national elections in 2024.
Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight killed at least two people and injured 15 others, including two children, Ukrainian authorities said. Meanwhile, Russia said it had intercepted the vast majority of 630 Ukrainian drones launched towards Moscow.
Nigeria's first Ebola case in more than a decade may be linked to travel in Uganda, Swiss authorities said on Thursday, although the source of infection remains unclear. Uganda maintains it has no cases of the disease.
Super typhoon Champi is set to batter Japan’s Okinawa Prefecture from Friday (23 October), bringing violent winds, torrential rain and waves up to 11 metres high, as airlines cancel flights and organisers scrap a major festival.
Two women from Austria and Switzerland have been freed after lengthy periods in captivity in Niger, following extensive diplomatic efforts to secure their release amid growing concerns over kidnappings in the Sahel region.
France has reported its first known human case of Shamonda virus following the death of an infected patient, authorities said on Thursday (22 October). The virus, typically found in livestock, is believed to have been transmitted by a biting midge.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment